$60B Sandy aid package clears Senate

A $60.4 billion Hurricane Sandy disaster aid package cleared the Senate Friday evening after Democrats beat back a Republican alternative promising less than half the funding and focused more narrowly on the immediate needs over the next three months.

“It would just stop dead in its tracks the recovery effort so desperately needed,” warned Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.). “You cannot plan a recovery on a three-month basis. The bottom line is if you want to build a tunnel, you can’t say, ‘I’ll build a fifth of the tunnel now and then we’ll see if there is more money later.’”

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Indeed, the final package — approved 62-32 — is heavily weighted with transit and community development funds, including long-term capital projects to strengthen the New York subway system and rebuild New Jersey’s devastated shoreline.

An estimated $5.35 billion is provided for the Army Corps of Engineers, for example, and $11.78 billion would be allocated to emergency relief for public transportation. The $17 billion designated for community development block grants is more than eight times what Republicans had proposed for the same account, and the bill also appropriates substantially more to FEMA for its ongoing disaster relief efforts.

Gulf state Republican senators — remembering their own experiences with Katrina — helped to swell the final vote on passage. But the House GOP leadership remains cool to any package so large, making the scaled-back Senate alternative still a factor, even in defeat.

“We are not saying this is the be-all and end-all of what Congress will ultimately fund to meet the needs of those who have been impacted by Sandy,” said Sen. Dan Coats (R-Ind.), the chief sponsor. “We are simply saying that before rushing to a number — which has not been fully scrubbed … we think it is more important to provide emergency funding for those in immediate need over the next three months.”

Sen. Tom Coburn (R-Okla.) flatly predicted the Senate package would die in the House, given the little time left to this session of Congress. And he warned, “We had better get hold of ourselves as a Senate and as a nation.”

How many billions are for payoffs of unrelated matters? 15 20? WE all know Congress is crooked and Obama is not straight! WE create cliffs daily - oh its only a Billion or so - no problemo The cliff was so important Obama spent 0 WASTED - millions going to Hawaii for two days - Bring this nonsense to a screaming HALT!